The Last Supper

What is the ambition of those in power?

“What is the truth of the ambition of those in power? If your ambition as a leader is all about you – if it’s about the success you have, about the attention you get during your time, about the wealth you accumulate – then that is more likely to lead to the absence of disciplined decisions that produce great results. But if it starts with people like Anne Mulcahy who are deeply passionate about the cause, about the company, about the work … it’s not really about them, but about something bigger they are going to create that is going to go long beyond them … whether it be music or a building or a set of ideas or a company. All this flows from that one root question: What is motivating your ambition? When you have the power, what is it ultimately all about? Is it about YOU or something bigger than you?”

– Jim Collins, author of How The Mighty Fall, in an interview with Charlie Rose.